Tenebrae
[ ten-uh-brey ]
/ ˈtɛn əˌbreɪ /
noun (used with a singular or plural verb) Roman Catholic Church.
the office of matins and lauds for Thursday, Friday, and Saturday of Holy Week, sung respectively on the afternoon of Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday of that week, at which the Crucifixion is commemorated by the gradual extinguishment of candles.
Origin of Tenebrae
1645–55; < Latin: literally, darkness
Example sentences from the Web for tenebrae
It seemed to them that they were ready to enter a church on the day of Tenebrae.
Notre-Dame de Paris |Victor HugoSi ergo lumen, quod in te est, tenebrae sunt, ipsae tenebrae quantae erunt?
It arose thus: Lafontaine went one day with Racine to tenebrae, and was given a Bible.
Character Sketches of Romance, Fiction and the Drama, Vol 1 |The Rev. E. Cobham Brewer, LL.D.
British Dictionary definitions for tenebrae
Tenebrae
/ (ˈtɛnəˌbreɪ) /
noun
(functioning as singular or plural) RC Church
(formerly) the matins and lauds for Thursday, Friday, and Saturday of Holy Week, usually sung in the evenings or at night
Word Origin for Tenebrae
C17: from Latin: darkness